Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #9 Review

Writer: Robert Venditti / Artist: Rafa Sandoval / DC Comics

Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps is the kind of franchise book we’ve been waiting for since Geoff Johns left the series. Robert Venditti has stumbled onto the perfect blend of giant, galactic battles and epic events that change the course of status quo in the universe. This book is the kind of thing that people buy comics for in the first place.

Issue #9 keeps swinging for the fences, focusing way more on the John Stewart and the rest of the Corps who still needs to reestablish their place in the universe. Venditti wastes no time making the stakes high as all hell with the Lanterns taking on a planetary outbreak of sorts while also figuring how how to fight Brainiac. Also, we learn a little more about Hal Jordan’s fate… which brings about a new element that’s sure to shake up the mythos for quite a while.

Meanwhile, he’s taking an interesting route with the Sinestro Corps, pondering whether or not a group that has been a long standing scourge of the universe can stand for something good now that their namesake is gone (for now). I’m also curious about what this power shift means for the future of the emotional spectrum and the other colors. Rafa Sandoval is back and pulling out all the stops artistically. The huge, detailed constructs and giant epic battles are exactly why he’s the perfect match with Venditti’s universe shattering scale of story.

Bottom Line: Venditti does a great job of shifting the focus over to the rest of the Corps in this story arc, raising the stakes even higher just like he did in the issue before. Brilliant.